Although Hurricane Ike devastated stretches of the U.S. Gulf Coast this past weekend, rescue crews are finding that improved evacuation procedures—and a bit of luck—helped many of the area's animals weather the storm.
Shelters set up to accommodate pets and livestock, for example, offered relief to people who were forced to evacuate while providing a safe haven for their animals.
"The sheltering process went really well. There was a place for the animals and they were all cared for," said Angela Clendenin, director of communications at Texas A&M University's College of Veterinary Medicine in College Station.
"Overall I think the preparations paid off."
(Related: "Gustav Pet Evacuations Show Katrina Lessons Learned" [September 2, 2008].)
But an unknown number of other animals may not be out of the woods, as rescue and aid efforts continue for the hundreds of stranded residents who, with their pets, did not heed orders to evacuate ahead of the storm.
"The next day or two will be very telling," Clendenin said.
"We're prepared to help animals in need—we're going to be ready."
Better Planning
In the catastrophic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, many disaster-response organizations refused to accept animals into shelters, prompting pet owners to make hard choices and subsequently spurring a huge aid effort to rescue stranded pets.
"With Hurricane Rita [also in 2005], there were a lot of people that refused to evacuate because they were not allowed to take their pets with them," Clendenin said. (Read more about Rita's wrath.)
Since then groups such as the American Red Cross have been working with animal-welfare specialists to make pets and other creatures an integral part of the evacuation process.
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